Boechera howellii

(S. Watson) Windham & Al-Shehbaz

GNRUnranked Found in 15 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →
GNRUnrankedGlobal Rank
Identity
Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.1231066
Element CodePDBRA40360
Record TypeSPECIES
ClassificationSpecies
Classification StatusStandard
Name CategoryVascular Plant
Endemicendemic to a single nation
KingdomPlantae
PhylumAnthophyta
ClassDicotyledoneae
OrderCapparales
FamilyBrassicaceae
GenusBoechera
Concept Reference
Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2010. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 7. Magnoliophyta: Salicaceae to Brassicaceae. Oxford University Press, New York. xxii + 797 pp.
Taxonomic Comments
Boechera howellii is described as a species, distinct from B. platysperma as opposed to a variety of it, by Windham and Al-Shehbaz (2006). The treatment of B. howellii in FNA (2010, vol. 7) also excludes B. covillei (described by Windham and Al-Shehbaz 2007b) as a distinct species. Thus, B. howellii sensu FNA is narrower than A. platysperma var. howellii as treated by Rollins (1993) and accepted by Kartesz (1994 and 1999).

According to Windham and Al-Shehbaz (2007b), "Pollen from the lectotype (and many other specimens) of B. howellii indicate that this taxon is a sexual diploid, whereas all flowering collections of B. covillei examined had pollen characteristic of apomictic triploids. This discrepancy in ploidy level and reproductive mode is accompanied by several morphological differences. Boechera covillei is distinguished from B. howellii by having basal leaf margins with 2- or 3(or 4)-rayed (vs. simple or rarely 2-rayed) trichomes, a greater number of ovules per ovary (18–30 vs. 10–20), and narrower (1.0–1.5 vs. 1.3–2.5 mm) seed wings."
Ecology & Habitat
Other Nations (1)
United StatesNNR
ProvinceRankNative
NevadaSNRYes
OregonSNRYes
CaliforniaSNRYes
Plant Characteristics
Economic Value (Genus)No
Roadless Areas (15)
California (10)
AreaForestAcres
Castle PeakTahoe National Forest14,974
Coyote NorthInyo National Forest11,932
Coyote SoutheastInyo National Forest53,159
Hall Natural AreaInyo National Forest5,236
Heart LakeLassen National Forest9,349
Horse Mdw.Inyo National Forest5,687
NessieInyo National Forest830
Rock Creek WestInyo National Forest3,626
Tioga LakeInyo National Forest829
Tragedy - Elephants BackEldorado National Forest20,866
Nevada (3)
AreaForestAcres
Boundary Peak (NV)Inyo National Forest21,851
Jobs Peak (NV)Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest1,342
SugarloafInyo National Forest11,534
Oregon (2)
AreaForestAcres
Maiden PeakWillamette National Forest9,627
Waldo - FujiWillamette National Forest15,273
References (4)
  1. Flora of North America Editorial Committee (FNA). 2010. Flora of North America north of Mexico. Vol. 7. Magnoliophyta: Salicaceae to Brassicaceae. Oxford University Press, New York. xxii + 797 pp.
  2. Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
  3. Kartesz, J.T. 1999. A synonymized checklist and atlas with biological attributes for the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. First edition. In: Kartesz, J.T., and C.A. Meacham. Synthesis of the North American Flora, Version 1.0. North Carolina Botanical Garden, Chapel Hill, N.C.
  4. Windham, M.D., and I.A. Al-Shehbaz. 2007b. New and noteworthy species of <i>Boechera</i> (Brassicaceae) III: Additional sexual diploids and apomictic hybrids. Harvard Papers in Botany 12(1): 235-257.